Robbie Anderson posts and deletes a tweet about his possible NFL future
Former New York Jets and current Carolina Panthers wide receiver Robbie Anderson caused a social-media stir on Saturday afternoon. In a since-deleted tweet, Anderson wrote, “Ain’t gone lie Thinking bout Retiring…”.
The tweet was posted at 12:16 p.m. ET and was deleted about 1.5 hours later.
Anderson, who recently turned 29 years old, is entering the first year of a two-year, $29.5 million contract extension that he signed in August 2021, which tacked on an additional two years to the two-year, $20 million deal he signed with Carolina in 2020. He is due to have a cap hit of $10.95 million this season.
Since leaving the New York Jets, Anderson’s career with the Panthers has been a tale of two seasons.
In 2020, Anderson set career-highs across the board as he made the Jets look silly for letting him leave in free agency. Anderson caught 95 passes (8th among WR) for 1,096 yards (13th among WR) and three touchdowns. He seemed to have solid chemistry with quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
In 2021, Anderson reunited with former Jets teammate Sam Darnold, and the pair could never get on the same page. Anderson had the worst season of his career, recording a career-low 519 receiving yards while catching less than half of his targets (53/110, 48.2%) and averaging a career-worst 9.8 yards per reception.
Ultimately, Anderson’s numbers over two years in Carolina are similar to those he posted over four years in New York.
Anderson is averaging 4.5 receptions for 48.9 yards and 0.24 touchdowns with the Panthers after averaging 3.3 receptions for 49.3 yards and 0.32 touchdowns with the Jets. His yards-per-reception average has gone way down (14.8 to 10.9) but his catch rate is up (54.2% to 60.2%).
We’ll see if this deleted tweet from Anderson turns out to be a spontaneous thought or a true sign of an early retirement for the Temple alum.
